Sob, broke my plane...

AuntPeggy

AuntPeggy

Final Approach
PoA Supporter
Joined
May 23, 2006
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8,479
Location
Oklahoma
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Namaste
Finally, the rain stopped for a few days and the ground hardened enough to pull a plane across the grass on Saturday. Little planes started hopping into the air and buzzing across the back yard. We carried logbooks and headsets over to the neighbor's hangar where our C-172 is waiting for us to build it a new roomy hangar of its own. We stomped around on the grass surrounding the hangar and determined that it was a little moist, but hard enough to support the plane if we didn't let it sit too long in one place. Don pre-flighted in the hangar while I plugged in the headsets and released the control lock. Because of the configuration of the hangar, the plane sits nose-first, so to take it out of the hangar, we have to push it backward onto the grass, then pivot it to face toward the taxiway. So, we pushed it out, moving quickly so that we could use momentum to get it as far out of the hangar as possible before drag from the grass stopped it.

Good plan...

The plane took a bounce as we pushed it backward. The nose went down, then it went up, causing the tail to go down and the elevators hit the ground and dig into the earth. Momentum drove the weight of the plane up onto the elevators. Sheet metal tore, rivets sheared, trim rod bent. So, we pulled her back into the hangar. Mechanic will look at her tomorrow.
 
Sad day. Hopefully the repairs won't be too expensive or time consuming. I always worry I'll run the elevator on the club plane into the cement because there isn't much clearance with the slope of the drainage portion of the area in between hangars.

Sometimes I wonder if there should be a Elevator up control lock.
 
So sad to hear it, AP. Hopefully you'll be airborne again soon.
 
Oh Wonderful, your mechanic will be delighted, watch their eyes when they see it. you might see $$. (I joke) but this is not going to be cheap. The whole tail assembly should be removed to check for damage of the horizontal attach points, control rod eye bearing, they all took the hit.
 
Best easiest cheapest fix is a used elevator from a salvage yard.
 
Awe man.... That's horrible. I bumped mine on th back of the hangar once and felt like I just sent it to the grave. Can't imagine how you feel right now. I feel you ya Peg....
 
Tom-D said:
Best easiest cheapest fix is a used elevator from a salvage yard.
Click to expand...

I bet there will be damage to the hinges on the stab as well as the elevator travel stops. The aft edges of the stab skins might be damaged by the elevator's overtravel. The trim jack mounts might be bent. Lots of places to check, now.

Pushing a trike backwards on soft ground or though any dip has always bothered me. The airplane falls onto its tail so easily and on many airplanes, critical stuff is too close to the ground.
 
I'm really sorry (and surprised) to read of this, but it is a lesson to learn for almost all of us.
 
Hate it for you. At least it is fixable.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Sad to hear, and sorry to hear about the damage. The bright side is that you weren't flying it and are safe.
 
At least now you'll have a chance to get that hangar built by the time your airplane is ready to fly.
 
Think of it this way - you dinged the right end of an airplane in terms of finding parts at a boneyard. Still sorry though.
 
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